What Will Be Gained?
by Andraiyel
Summary: Suzaku is torn when Lelouch asks him to take his life. What happens when he is given another option? What will be gained? What will be lost? Rated M for later chapters
1. Chapter 1

Running. Running faster than he had ever been able to run before in his life. It felt as if he was running at the speed if light, even though he knew this was not true. Close now. Even closer. Running, bounding, and then leaping high, higher than he knew was even possible.

It was like flying. That is what he compared it to as he soared through the air weightlessly. This is what flying is like.

He should have been able to feel the wind brushing against his face and running its fingers through his wavy brown locks. Caressing his face with cool breaths, but the damned mask was keeping him from experiencing these feelings. 'Is this what my life is going to be like from now on? Hiding? Forever behind this huge hunk of plastic encircling my head?'

Even with his peripheral vision restricted by the mask, he could see the wide-eyed stares coming from all sides. The adrenaline rush he was experiencing caused him to notice every little thing about his current surroundings. The eyes that were taking in every part of his air-bound form were of every color of the rainbow. Blue, green, brown, and even a few red. He could even make out the faces of people that he knew. Lloyd, Cecile, Kallen, and so many others that were forced to come watch this today. Of course they did not know of the main event that was the reason of their forced most prominent of all of these staring eyes, however, belonged to the young princess lying in chains and bright red cloth of some sort beneath him. There was shock and fear running through these lavender hued purple orbs, yet the true emotions, which lay underneath, were unreadable to him.

'This is for you and the rest of the world, Nunnally. You will understand our true intentions one day. Maybe never fully, but enough to know that your brother died in honor and not in shame, I promise. The world will now hopefully become a better place, like that of which you once wished for.'

The time was close upon him now. There was no turning back at this point for fear of making it worse than it already was. If that was even possible.

Of course it was.

Thud. He landed lithely on the grandiose float that was his emperor's. He took no time at all in straightening himself in front of the person who was his leader and soon to be victim of the main entertainment for today. He was absorbing his surroundings too quickly and his vision was becoming blurry along the edges. 'Or are these tears?' He had no way to tell for he could lift his fingers to his face, but only to be turned away by the plastic encasing his head.

Mock fear and surprise mixed with true sadness were the most prominent of the emotions floating in these basins of shining violet. Yet, only visible to Suzaku's perceptive eyes, was the small, sad smile gracing the lips of his beloved, yet doomed, emperor.

That is what caused him to hesitate.

'I can't do this! Why me? Of all the people in the world, why me?!'

His sword trembled in his lightly shaking hands. With grand effort, he began to lift it higher, but stopped as suddenly as he had begun.

'I can't do this, now or ever. I am sorry that I failed you Lelouch.' "Please forgiv-," he began to turn away, but that is when he saw it. The raw desperation and pleading look in those violently purple eyes. It was louder than any words could have been. It was screaming, "Please Suzaku! Do not let me down! I trusted you with this task that is more important to me than you could ever know. Please…" Pleading. Pleading and crying for him to hold up his end of the bargain that they had struck mere hours earlier. Screaming at him. This was more than he could handle at that moment in time.

In less than half of a second, before he could even realize what he was doing, his sword had disappeared, burying itself to the hilt, and then reappeared on the other side of the slim body that was Lelouch.

Lelouch and Suzaku tensed at the exact same moment, finally feeling the full force of what had just happened, and then Lelouch relaxed as his body gave up the will to try and survive this fatal blow to the abdomen.

"Nghh!" He sputtered. A thin line of ruby colored blood began to trickle out the side of his beautiful, yet grimacing bow-shaped mouth. His blood sparkled in the sunlight of that mildly cool day that would be his last. Suzaku could feel the warmth of his blood seeping rapidly through the black gloves on his hands.

Suzaku tried not to move the sword in any way, shape, or form for fear of causing any more pain than was already unnecessary. The lids of Lelouch's eyes began to lower slowly and his grimace faltered as his mouth became slack. The thin line of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth became thicker, almost flowing now. His luminous purple eyes were almost completely hidden, the light rapidly fading from them like the incandescent vitality that was his short-lived life.

"I am so sorry," he whispered almost silently. Somehow, this silent sentiment was heard by the other person on the top of the float.

"P-pleas-se…t-t-take care of-," he began to cough violently, splattering blood all over the front of Suzaku's new persona. Lelouch sank to his knees, sliding off of Suzaku's sword with a wet, slick, sliding sound that made Suzaku want to vomit right then and there. He held it in though with the iron-will he had slowly and painstakingly gained over his time from being in the army and as Lelouch's knight of zero.

"Puh-please take c-c-c-are of master Lel-Le-Lelouch…" The sentence was barely finished. The life was slipping away quickly and noticeably from the life form swaying dangerously at his feet.

Quietly, as if responding only to himself, he softly whispered, "I swear on my life that no harm will come to him as long as I am around. I will keep my end of the bargain…and this I promise to you…Sayoko."

And with that, her eyes rolled into the back of her head and she toppled down the front of the float, only to land next to the violently trembling and shrieking form that was Nunnally.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Ok, so I kinda forgot to establish this last chapter, but this is my very first fanfic(ever!) XD I am a noob writer, so yeeeeaaaahhh. That is all I should have to say. Ummm, I have no idea where I intend to go with this fanfic...I kinda just got hit with the lightening bolt of ideas, so I decided to take a metal rod and run with it, and that is how the first chapter was born! XD (I am currently sitting outside with said metal rod, waiting for the next storm...)

DISCLAIMER: Ok, seriously? I am not going to repeat myself by saying I don't own Code Geass each chapter... I mean really. If I owned it, I would not be sitting here writing fanfiction.

* * *

"NO!" She shrieked. "No! No, big brother! Open your eyes, please! Don't leave me!" She was shrieking and crying hysterically.

Shining crystal-like tears were streaming down her face in rushing torrents. Nunnally bowed her head, her hair rushing down from her back and shoulders to shroud her face in a silken light brown curtain.

"Just don't leave me! Anything else but that…" she said, desperation lacing every word that came out of her small, quivering lips. "Please!" she cried, burying her face in her "brother's" bloodied chest.

Suzaku was still standing atop the land barge commonly referred to as a parade float. Seeing this made Suzaku's chest tighten, the hands of guilt and remorse strangling his heart with their merciless fingers. Slowly, very slowly.

Nunnally lifted her head from Sayoko's chest, tears were still streaming down her face; no longer were they in rushing torrents, but more in the fashion of lazy rolling streams. They ceased being bright and clear, now a light rose color and gummy-like because of the crimson red blood that streaked her face. The contrast of her skin to the sanguine fluid was like rose petals scattered along the ground after a fresh snow has just fallen. Her hair was disheveled and framed her face in a perfectly imperfect light brown halo that was highlighted with blood the color of scarlet.

The sight of Nunnally in this state made Suzaku begin to tremble once more. The force of these tremors shaking him to his very core. He had never anyone so broken before, especially this girl he had believed to be so strong-willed. His breathing hitched, the air seemingly trapped in his lungs. This was when she finally looked up and acknowledged the figure looking down on her from such a high perch. She was really truly seeing him for the first time.

'Why?' she wanted to scream at him. She tried to cry out to him, but she could not locate her voice through all of her hysterics. It was impossible to get her voice out for it seemed to be lodged in her throat like a considerably and uncomfortably large lump. She did uncover something, though. She found that she, for some unknown reason to her, could not possibly be angry with this man. She discovered that she harbored no hatred in her heart towards the murderer of her beloved brother.

Her nimble and delicate fingers then proceeded to caress her "brother's" cold cheek, wishing, wishing oh so desperately and with her whole heart, that she could at least have said goodbye; wishing that she could have at least uttered these last words, "I love you," letting Lelouch know just how much she truly appreciated him.

Suzaku could not bear to watch this for much longer. 'Nunnally, if only you knew. If only you knew that it is not Lelouch who has died! It was really Sayoko! But, I guess that knowing that would not make this any easier for you. Having to deal with the fact that your friend, a person who deeply cared for you and protected you with her own life when times were rough…'

"I… I am sorry…" he whispered without even realizing it, his voice completely and utterly void of life.

And with that, he spun around on his heels, his cape fluttering and following suit in a noiseless fashion, to face the crowd that was gathering at the rear end of the monstrous float. In a split second, he had arrived at the conclusion that it was decidedly better to address the gathering multitudes of people rather than to flee this place that would forever be marked in his mind as an area of misery. He made a quick mental note to never to return to this immediate vicinity.

Suzaku's eyes flickered to the many different hued orbs that, for the most part, had their direct attention on him. Many of the faces that he could see were displaying only one emotion, complete and utter shock. Very few members of the surrounding crowd were composed enough to not have their jaws hanging open.

A new emotion, other than awe to accompany the shock, began to weave and maneuver its way into the eyes and faces of his constituents. Unidentifiable at first, it soon became crystal clear as to what this new-felt emotion was. It looked like fear, but at the same time it was respect. Then it continued to morph itself. It soon turned into acceptance and then it finally landed on appreciation.

'It is probably better that I start sooner rather than later,' he thought apprehensively to himself. He knew that he was nowhere even close to as good of an orator as Lelouch, but he was going to have to give it all that he could. 'If all else fails, I still have plan B: run like hell.'

He raised his hand towards the sky in a manner to grab attention, just like Lelouch had done when he had been Zero. It worked, kind of, so he decided to begin.

"Do not look to me as your new leader, for I promptly refuse." A look of confusion began to run through the faces of all the people standing below.

"I did not take these drastic actions for myself, or anyone else for that matter, to take the reigns and rule over this world resulting in the return to times like these. Many, including myself, have been waiting, some less patiently than others, for change to occur and a new power to take control." Clearly no one had any idea where he was going to go with this. In fact, he was even sure that most were continuing to not listen to him, for the shock of not so previous events still captured and held tightly onto their attention.

"The UFN had the right idea, but even their plans and goals were flawed. World peace is impossible." A ripple of anger ran through the crowd. He had finally gotten the attention of all the stragglers with the magic word: peace.

Someone in the crowd decided to make their own opinion clear. "Well then what the hell do you think that we should do? If world peace is impossible to achieve, as you say, then what the hell should we do!"

"Yeah! What should we do?"

"Do you expect us to just sit on our asses?!"

Suzaku was beginning to worry. 'I have definitely gotten myself into something now, haven't I? I don't even know what else I was going to say to them, and I sure didn't plan to get a reaction from them!'

"As I said before, the UFN had the right idea, but their plans were flawed. They had made plans for a world without conflict, a world where everyone would get along. They ignored the fact that there will always be conflict. No matter what occurs, someone will always be in disagreement. That is why we need to create an organization similar to that of the UFN, but with goals to prevent war and conflict between nations, at all costs."

Whispering and side conversations began to appear among members of the crowd. "What is Zero planning to do?" How is he going to pull this off?" "What is going to happen to the remaining Britannian royalty?" "Who is going to be part of this organization?" So many questions, most would go unanswered.

"All of these questions and more will be answered soon." He yelled over the crowd in a tone that suggested impatience. He gave one final look towards the crowd and then immediately proceeded to bound off the top of the float once recognized as the emperor's. Who knew what they were going to do with it now. Suzaku didn't care as long as he never saw its gore-covered largeness again.

Feet barely touching the pavement as he flew through crowds and hordes of people, most still gawking at the float where he and "Lelouch" once stood, Suzaku finally realized the full force of his actions of the past few hours.

His mind was beginning to travel through many different thoughts roaming around in his head. Wandering from his final view of Nunnally to the heated conversation he and Lelouch had had in his private chambers. 'That is what caused all of this madness! If Lelouch had not been such a fool!' Still dashing through the last of the straggling people at the edges of the main gathering, Suzaku's thoughts began to sink even deeper into this unpleasant memory-----+

* * *

Another unnececessary A/N: So, yeah. Wow. I can't believe that anyone actually read this chapter. It was REALLY boring and I am (as far as you know) sorry for that. If it had not been my own fanfic, I wouldn't have even read this chapter XD

Anyways, to the people that reviewed the first chapter: I love you. I also love reviews. So I would appreciate it greatly if you would review. They stroke my ego, and let me tell you, he loves to be stroked. (yes my ego is male and his name is Ryxcell) XD

~Andraiyel


	3. Chapter 3

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A/N: Sorry about the wait. So here is an extra long chapter as my way of saying, "Sorry, I am a very lazy person." XD

Oh, be prepared, everything is kind of random. I am talking about one thing and then I go off to explain another randomly, only to come back the first thing after I had realized that I got off topic XD

**DISCLAIMER: **Ok, we established this in chapter 2. So if you feel the need to read it again, feel free to go back and do so.

* * *

His paced had slowed now. Now, instead of being at a run, he was at a mere jog. His thoughts were consuming every aspect of him, especially his attention. He mentally shook himself out of his mind and looked about him.

Nothing of his surroundings was familiar. He was in an eerily deserted park where not even the birds were singing; none of the animals, for that matter, were making any noise. The silence echoed off of the trees and park benches that surrounded him.

'Where am I?' he questioned himself hesitantly. The voice inside his head made a snide and immediate response to this innocently asked question, "And do you honestly expect an answer? You are _surely_ going to get one talking to yourself," every word dripping with sarcasm. He readily ignored these comments, pushing them to the far nether regions of his mind.

'How do I not know where I am? I know Japan like the back of my h- Oh, yeah.' He had completely forgotten. He was no longer in his homeland of Japan, but in the foreign lands of Britannia.

Without even thinking, he reached up to hit himself on the forehead for being so forgetful, but the palm of his gloved hand was met only by the cold, hard plastic of his Zero helmet instead of warm skin. Again, he had forgotten yet another vitally important fact. He was still dressed as Zero. At least there was not anyone around to see him. Wait. At that moment, this was a bad thing. He still needed directions. Not that he could just go up to someone dressed as Zero and ask for them, but at least if there had been people around he might have been able to figure something out.

'So, I am alone, hopelessly lost, and dressed as a very well known hero…or despot, depending on the way you look at it, either way carrying mixed feelings from the massive population of this country. Well, it could be worse than this…' he tried to assure himself, hoping that having a positive attitude would help him escape this situation that much sooner. 'I mean I could be… Well it is not like… I bet there are many people who…' He could not think of anything at all that would or could possibly make his current situation any better.

His frustration, at that point, had hit a breaking point. "AHHHH!!!! Who the hell do I think I am kidding! I'm fucking lost and it's not like I could even ask for help because I am in this fucking costume!" he yelled out loud without even realizing it, letting his pent up anger and frustration pour out in rushing torrents of emotion.

"FUCKFUCKFUCK!!" He quickly spun around and effortlessly kicked a large sapling with all of his gathered strength, foot making contact with the center of its juvenile trunk. This resulted in the young tree becoming partially uprooted, a rather immense crack weaving its way up the toughened bark from the point of impact; bark littering the immediate area around the tree.

"Fuck!" he yelled one final time, his voice reverberating along the confines of the cavernous mask, becoming slightly muffled by it as well from the outside. His arms and shoulders were still tense from his sudden out burst and his jaw was clenched. Suzaku rolled his shoulders to release the tension and unclenched his jaw; he leaned his neck and head back slowly as he did this, staring wistfully into the sky beyond.

It was now overcast, the sun no longer shining brightly overhead. Suzaku's mood was becoming as dark as the stormy, rain-threatening sky above that extended towards nothingness. There were still no sounds to be heard anywhere in the park, except for the sound of Suzaku's hoarse breathing.

Gradually his resolve began to falter and he plopped himself down on the bench beside the desecrated, once up-right sapling. His chest was heaving, air rushing rapidly in and out of his winded lungs. His face, technically his mask, was resting in his darkly gloved hands; his elbows were supported by the middles of his thighs while his back was hunched over to accommodate to this position.

"Fuck me," he sighed somewhat loudly, having almost caught his breath from his previous outburst.

'What am I going to do?' he wondered to himself. 'What. Am. I. Going. To. Do?' Suzaku questioned himself once more, not expecting to receive an answer.

His eyelids were beginning to feel abnormally heavy, drooping to get accustomed to this new weight. His breathing was slowing drastically from the once heavy pant he had grown accustomed to. The days events were finally starting to take a toll on him. 'I am tired. I need to find out how to return ho-' Suzaku began to embark on yet another pointless wandering through his jumbled up thoughts.

They were all over the place. From his childhood to the death of his father. His somewhat lengthy run in the military, his abbreviated enrollment at Ashford Academy, Lelouch. "Lelouch…" he sighed sleepily. And this was the last coherent thought that he had before his world turned over to the darkness.

* * *

Somehow he knew he was in no particular place exactly. He was somewhere, but that was of no importance to him at the moment.

It was kind of dark and every once in a while there would be a familiar flash of something that would spark a reaction out of one of his five senses. A certain taste, smell, sight, or sound. There were even familiar textures that he could feel graze themselves against his skin lightly, even though he was loathe to see them. It went from kind of dark to pitch black, except for the little flickers of color, that is.

Suzaku stood stock-still, not even moving an inch for fear that these shimmers of color were of some substantial mass just waiting to hit him. He closed his eyes, wishing that it would all go away. That is when the scent of chalk and eraser shavings was bearing down on him. His eyelids fluttered up and he immediately saw that a bright grey streak of light was on a fast track towards his very position.

"Henngh!" he opened his mouth to yell something, but only the sound of his straining voice box came out. Suzaku jumped quickly to the side, missing the grey streak by a fraction of an inch, only to then hit a dark red one. "Huhnn!" He braced himself for impact, screwing his eyes shut as tightly as he possibly could.

Falling. Hurtling towards something that was unknown to him. He was falling at speeds that rivaled that of anything else he had ever felt before. A horrible smell was rushing towards him. The odor was overbearing. It disgusted him, yet he was curious to know what it was. Not curious enough, however, to open his tightly shut eyes. He began to recognize the scent. 'Iron? Something metallic…'

He raised his arm to shield his nose from this noxious odor, but was unable to move. He had stopped. Stopped falling, moving, and even breathing. His eyes shot open and he took a large breath. In the midst of this, his breath caught inside of his throat.

Suzaku finally knew what that detesting odor was. It wasn't iron. At this point, he wished it had been. In fact, it would have been better if it were anything but what it really was.

It was blood, and it was all over him. It dawned on him why he had not been able to raise his arms to shield his face. That was because his arms were attached to his hands. His hands were then attached to the hilt of a sword that was beginning to warm to the blood that was pouring out onto it. And where was the sword attached that was so frightening to Suzaku? It was attached to the gut of his father, Genbu Kururugi.

'no. No. NO.' The breath that still resided in his now small body rose to the upper most part of his chest. His chest tightened for the few moments longer that this breath was held there. Then it was let out in one fell swoop.

"NOOOO!!!" he shrieked rather loudly, his voice high and shrill because he now resided in his former child self. He let go of the sword like it was on fire, immediately backing away from the dying form that was his father.

"NOOO!!" he shrieked yet again, less force in it this time around.

Genbu Kururugi stood there for a few seconds longer, his widened eyes no longer taking in any sights. THUD! His knees hit the floor making him look like he was kneeling before someone. THUNK! His head hit the ground face first, the force of the fall pushing the sword further out of his back, blood pooling all around his lifeless form. Genbu Kururugi was dead. For the second time.

Suzaku brought his hands to his face so that he could hide his sight away from the lifeless body of his father. This was all too similar to the day's previous events. Tears leaked from his widened emerald eyes, proceeding to snake their way through his widely spread fingers.

"NO. NO. NO!!" he cried. He used his small feet to push himself away from the blood that was spreading across the floor, not even realizing that his blood-soaked hands had streaked his entire face a dark maroon color. "STOP!!! GET ME AWAY FROM HERE! NO MORE, PLEASE!" he cried with all his might, his voice high pitched and feminine, for at this point he had not yet reached puberty.

The air tensed around him. FFFWOOOSH!! Suzaku was standing now. His hands still covered his face, but there was no longer any blood or tears except for the single one that rolled gently down his cheek.

While he had been wherever he had been, he had realized something. Something that could explain why what had happened had happened. Those lights, they were not just random distractions or hazards that were whizzing by.

They were his memories. Everything that he could possibly remember from the very beginning of time that he could begin to remember things. Even things that he had thought that he had forgotten or had tried to suppress were there with him. It explained everything. Why he had been overloaded with all the different smells and other senses that were all familiar to him, and even why he had witnessed the death of his father yet again. It was the most logical explanation. Well, it would have been had logic played a part in what he was now experiencing.

He quickly wiped away the tear that was hanging from his jaw and looked about him. He was back in the darkness with the colorful shimmers of light. Something had changed though. The colors were no longer streaking around the vast emptiness at the speed of light (no pun intended), they were stock-still; luminescent globes of intense coloring and smells, and even sounds of every kind.

Suzaku spun around to get a better grasping of his surroundings. He walked cautiously in between the orbs, careful not to even lightly brush against a single one, but also careful to attentively observe each and every one to see if he could differentiate between them in more ways than just their color. He learned that if he stood next to one long enough, it would start to show him flashes of the memory that it held. Kind of like a preview to a movie.

This quickly lost its entertainment value as he continued to weave in and out of the rows upon rows of his memories. It felt as if he had been walking around them for hours! Suzaku could not even talk out loud to keep himself company because, for some reason, he was still unable to speak. This was more than a little frustrating.

As he was just about to plop himself down and give up, something out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. An abnormally colored globe floated above the ground to his far right. This was not one of the reasons why it caught his attention because all of the globes floated. It was glowing far brighter than the rest of the balls of light and the color was captivating. It was a beautiful violet tinged with a light colored cerulean. The hue of purple that it created was breathtaking. He was almost pulled towards it by some attraction that it held.

'This must be some important memory,' he thought, passively. When he neared the sphere of purple he did not even stop to observe the memory that it held within its murky depths. Suzaku immediately dove right into mysteriously tinted orb without a seconds thought.

* * *

Suzaku Kururugi, Knight of Zero, advanced down the corridor at a clipped pace. Earlier that day he had been requested to appear in the private chambers of his emperor, Lelouch vi Britannia. The summons had been quite out of the ordinary. He had been called upon by one of Lelouch's many personal assistants. This puzzled Suzaku because Lelouch always sent for him himself.

But then again, Lelouch himself had been acting unusually outlandish as of late. Lelouch had never been one to readily avoid Suzaku, repeatedly coming to him with his problems or to seek out advice. Suzaku would even go as far to say that Lelouch even enjoyed his company, the annoyance that Suzaku was. Well, he would like to think that at least. It gave Suzaku pleasure and a sense of importance to have Lelouch bid his presence over that of anyone else's. Any time, day or night, Suzaku would wait, almost impatiently, for that single beckoning call from his beloved emperor.

As of late, however, Lelouch had rarely commanded his presence before him. The past week had been torturous for Suzaku, sitting and wondering when his company would once again be requested by his highness. Whenever he would catch sight of Lelouch he would attempt to grasp his attention, if only for a moment, to exchange a few pleasantries with his long-time best friend. However, Lelouch must have developed superpowers though, sometime along the way. Suzaku could swear that Lelouch could detect him a mile away! Whenever Lelouch would detect Suzaku's immediate nearness closing in on him, Lelouch would have one of his assistants quickly dismiss him from his primary proximity; Suzaku left to watch his back swiftly recede into the distance.

Each time this happened, Suzaku would feel his chest tighten just a little bit more in the iron grip of anxiety. His thoughts would immediately travel to the worst possible conclusions, 'Does he no longer have any need for me?' or 'Am I a burden to him? Holding him back from the goals that he wishes to accomplish?' That was the last thing he ever wanted to be for Lelouch. A burden. He would stand there for a few moments longer, running through these thoughts in his clutter of a mind, and then he would proceed to shake away all of these irrational conclusions he had come to. Life would 'reset' and then the cycle of him feeling overlooked would begin anew.

Suzaku was disquieted, literally sweating bullets, each time a member of Lelouch's personal aides, or any of his trusted subordinates for that matter, would near him; only to realize that he was being extremely paranoid when they would just pass him by on their way to do some odd job or some other form of task work under the order of his imperial highness. To put it in simple terms, Suzaku was a nervous wreck on the hazardous path towards a very overly dramatic and quite unnecessary mental breakdown.

That was until that very dreary and drab Thursday afternoon. The sun had not been able to muscle its way through the clouds in about a week and it seemed as if the entire world was taking on the persona of grey. Every lustrous flower, blooming bush, and sprouting tree in the imperious garden seemed to wilt just a little bit more every day that the sun was absent under the pressure of the darkness and gloom. This feeling of melancholy was filling the atmosphere to its very brim, almost to the point of overflowing. The people of the surrounding areas were in a funk. They confined themselves to their homes for fear that the darkness of the outside world would pierce them and enter into their very souls. The pessimistic feelings would settle down in the inner most parts of their minds, having made a permanent new home for themselves, they would never leave even after the sun began to shine once again. The aura of everyone near Suzaku read the same: full of the lethargy and longing. Longing. Longing for the sun to break away from the vice grip of the inky and overcast that had been shielding it away from its desperate worshippers for so long. A yearning for the sun to once again kiss the earth with its warming rays, to kiss every part of nature including the tender skin of humankind. Longing to frolic over the sun warmed earth between the bright and radiant sunflowers that these lands were known for. A desire to be able to take well-deserved naps in the outdoors, knowing that there is no need for a blanket because of the natural warmth tumbling down on top of you in rays of sparkling light from the sky.

Well, that was how Suzaku was interpreting everything, and let's face it; he was being way too overly dramatic. He was itching for some sunshine. It also did not help that he was feeling the slightest bit ditched. Left in the dust. Clearly this was not the case; it had only been a week!

"The worst week ever," Suzaku muttered darkly under his breath. His little utterance could be only slightly heard over the rough, heavy patter of raindrops against the large picture window beside him.

He sat on the window ledge with his knee brought up to his chest and his forehead pressed against the cool, hard glass. He stared out at nothing in particular, the rain obstructing his vision had he been searching for anything at all. Well, unless of course he had been searching for an overly extravagant flashing beacon that was a mere few feet from his face. He probably would have seen that.

"Hnnnn," he sighed loudly, his hot breath steaming up the window so that he could no longer see out of it at all. 'Bored. Bored. BORED,' the little voice inside of his head was apparently trying to get a point across.

"Hnnmm," Suzaku sighed again, louder this time around. 'What to do today,' he thought with little to no enthusiasm. He let his eyes droop to a closed position as he thought through the very few things that he had to do on a regular basis.

'Lloyd could care less if I decided to show up at the hangar today. Probably wouldn't let me take the Lancelot out because of the rain anyways. I could just go there spontaneously for something to d- No. Cecile made it quite clear that she did not want to see me anywhere even close to the hangar this week,' he shuddered a bit as he thought back to the threats that she had voiced so menacingly. He didn't even know that such words could ever come out of her mouth! Cecile had made sure to paint a perfectly crystal clear picture in his mind of what would happen to him if he decided to show up against her wishes. Her reasoning for these threats: his social life was extremely lacking and he needed to do something, anything, that didn't involve work or any sort of politics.

'I don't know what she is talking about. I totally do have a life outside of the service and the royal family! I have an amazing social life! I could call up any one of my friends right now and…' he stopped to think this one over for a few minutes. Who was there that he could call?

Milly was working and had not really been her normal fun-loving self in a long time anyways. Rivalz was doing God only knows what and Suzaku was pretty sure that whatever it happened to be, Rivalz would surely choose it over talking to him. Nina was currently working on some huge project with Lloyd and Cecile. She had made it quite clear that she would be unavailable for any reason. It was always awkward to talk to her anyways. She wasn't one for talking and their conversations were always littered with awkward silences. 'Well how about Kallen?' He quickly flashed back to their last encounter with each other in the holding cell. He had willingly let her vent her anger at him by letting her beat the shit out of him. He had also tried to drug her. That was definitely one way to ruin a relationship of any kind. His hand reflexively traveled up to touch his face, the ghost of the pain that she had inflicted could be felt there. Not that he hadn't hurt her. He had just hurt her in mental ways more so than physically.

'Another one down, not many more to go,' he thought bitterly as he ran through the last of his very brief mental list of friends. There was always Shirley. She had always been a good person to go to when he needed to talk. Plus, she was always up for a good conver- Oh, yeah. He had forgotten that talking to Shirley was no longer an option for him. He had taken her for granted when she had been living and now he wished for her company when he knew that he could not have it. How typical. Wanting everything that he could not have. Pathetic.

"Stop!" he growled loudly. Self-pity was easily something that he did not want to wallow in at the moment. Gino. 'That's it! I can call Gino- nnnn.' They weren't exactly on speaking terms, were they? Especially considering the fact that he had sided with Lelouch instead of the cause that Gino was fighting for. Lastly, there was always Anya. She did not really talk though. Ever. That was even worse than talking to Nina. Talk about awkward.

Okay, so maybe Cecile was right. Maybe he didn't have a life outside of the service and his loyalty to Lelouch. 'Pffft, I don't need one. I am perfectly fine as I am!' Right?

"Hmmmm," Suzaku sighed yet again, his forehead sliding down the slick, moist glass as his body slumped in defeat. He opened his eyes to look out the window.

Somehow, it had magically started to rain harder than it had been before. 'If it keeps up at this rate, the whole area is going to be flooded. That would be pretty interesting though… Maybe I could build a raft like Noah and get some little anima-'

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a loud knocking at the door. "KKUH-KKUH-KKUH." Suzaku just closed his eyes again, leaning his head back and letting his hair fall out of his face by the hands of gravity.

"KKUH-KKUH-KKUH." The knocking was a bit more forceful this time around, obviously to get the person's attention. Suzaku sat up with a start, eyes fluttering open.

"O-oh! Please come in!" he called, finally realizing that the knocking was to get _his_ attention. 'Stupid,' he scolded himself as he watched the doorknob turn so that the person on the other side of the door could enter. Then the turning stopped abruptly. There was a bit of jiggling as the person on the other side tried to open the door. 'What the- Oh, right.' He had locked the door behind him as he entered the room earlier this morning. He hadn't wanted to be disturbed. For good reason though. He preferred to keep his thoughts to himself and this was especially hard when he was known for blurting things out at random intervals; especially when he was really deep in thought. He just couldn't help it!

Suzaku got up and quickly made his way across the room over to the door and turned the handle. With a click the door swung open and before him stood none other than Lelouch's younger sister, Carine.

She was wearing her new uniform that had been issued to her by Lelouch. A poufy black skirt of modest length that came to just past her knees, a high-necked black shirt that had long sleeves, and to top it all off there was a snow white apron that was cinched around her waist with a black satin ribbon and came to an end just above the bottom of the skirt. There were red rings around her purple irises. Clearly she was under the effects of Geass, but that was nothing new.

'Hmm, I thought Lelouch still had Carine and Guinevere doing house work…'

"Sir Kururugi, Knight of Zero?" she asked in her light tinkling voice. There was no inquiry in her voice, though clearly this had been a question.

"Yes," He answered matter of factly. There was no point in answering in any round about way because she could care less. In fact, she already knew that it was him, but it was routine that she ask and receive an answer anyways.

She lifted her gaze, her gaze distant and her mind far away from that very moment, and stared him straight in the face with her far away eyes. "His imperial highness, Lelouch vi Britannia, requests that you, Suzaku Kururugi, accompany him in his private chambers in the approximation of one hour," Carine repeated the message that she had been given in a toneless fashion, her voice showing no emotion at all.

His heart just about skipped a beat. 'Really!?' Lelouch wanted to see him? It was like little angels had begun to sing all around him.

"Thank you, Car-" but evidently she did not require an answer to be dismissed. She turned on her heel and was gone as quickly as she had arrived, her snow white tights whispering as she walked.

He was ecstatic! Finally, after a very long week, Lelouch had finally called upon him again! He looked at the clock that was hanging on the opposite wall. 'An hour, huh? I can do that easy. Now, what to do to pass the time?'

He was already nervous and a bit jumpy, his fingers tapping against his leg and pulling at the material of his pants. 'What to do. What to do…' He started pacing and then stopped to look at the clock. Only 3 minutes had passed in the time since he had last looked at the clock. 'Damnit, this is going to be the death of me!' he thought, desperately seeking something that would distract him for the next 57 minutes.

The rain had lessened a bit outside and he could now see a bit more clearly out the window. There was still nothing in particular to look at so this clearly would not distract him.

"GAH!" he yelled frustratedly and then stormed out of the room. It was stifling and he needed to get away.

As he was about to turn the corner he bumped into none other than Guinevere. With the speed that Suzaku had been traveling at, they both ended up hitting the ground. The towels that Guinevere had been carrying were scattered all up and down the hall now, in a wrinkled mess that would take forever to re-fold. Suzaku stared wide-eyed towards Guinevere to see if she was okay, but of course, her face displayed no emotion whatsoever. She then proceeded to stand up, straighten her skirt, and then she bowed before the still shocked form of Suzaku.

"My dearest apologies Master Suzaku. If there is anything that I can do to make it up to you, please feel free to just ask," she said robotically, her voice as toneless as that of Carine's. Her eyes were distant as well and there were the ever so familiar red rings around the irises. She was clearly under the power of Geass as well, but Suzaku had already been aware of this.

He shook his head quickly, "O-oh n-no! I am perfectly fine! Thank you though. Is there any way that I can help you Miss Guinevere?" he asked with real sincerity.

He reached for a towel that was nearest to him to begin folding, only to have his hand quickly slapped away.

"I am sorry Master Suzaku, but it is against my orders to receive any help, especially from you." With that she kneeled down and began to gather all of the towels that had dropped in the collision.

Suzaku's shocked look quickly changed to that of a puzzled one. "Umm, ok then…" he mumbled and pushed himself into a standing position. "Sorry again about bumping into you, Miss Guinevere…" he said quickly, but it was as if she was on another planet because she completely ignored this comment, and his presence in general. He turned on his heel as she continued to gather and re-fold the now soiled towels.

'That was just a little bit awkward… Now to where…' Just as he thought this, his stomach growled obnoxiously. "Ok, apparently to the kitchen then…" he muttered to himself.

As he made his way through the winding corridors, he paid careful attention to the very few people that he encountered. By the time that he had reached the kitchen, he had only seen three people, and this was including Guinevere. 'Funny, I could have sworn that there was way more people around this place…' In fact, he was sure of it. 'Where did everyone go?' he was about to think further into this, but then he pushed open the swinging doors of the kitchen and stopped.

The wonderful aromas of cooking food hit him head-on. He almost started to drool. He hadn't realized just how hungry he really was until he had entered into the room, but then again, anyone who entered in here automatically became hungry. That was a given. Even if you had just finished a five-course meal, once the scent of what was cooking hit you, you were gone.

"Mmmm," Suzaku sniffed the air hungrily. He had no idea what was cooking, but it smelled delicious and he wanted it. Now. He weaved his way through the many stoves and ovens and other various things that made a kitchen a kitchen, when he finally came upon what was cooking. One of the very few people in the castle that was not under Geass was standing at a stove over a large pot filled with something that he could not quite see. He leaned over her shoulder, trying not to disturb her, so that he could get a better look. It looked like mush. White mush speckled with dark leafy green and small flecks of brown. Ewww.

He leaned back a little ways and then tried to get her attention, "Umm, excuse me, but could you please tell me what it is that you are making?" He was very curious as to how something so unappetizing looking could smell so delicious.

"Well, I am not quite sure what it is called, but I can tell you what is in it if you would like," she turned to face him as she talked, her dull grey eyes bright with life and happiness.

"Umm, sure," Suzaku said hesitantly, not sure if he wanted to know in case it was something gross. He just wanted to be able to eat it. She must have seen the look of uncertainty and worry flash over his features because she let out a small girlish giggle.

"Don't worry," she assured him, "there isn't anything in it that is out of the ordinary or creepy, I can promise you that."

She turned back around and grabbed a spoon from the countertop, placing it in the funky mash and getting a good-sized scoop on it before then handing it to Suzaku. He took it hesitantly, waiting for her to explain it first before he decided on whether or not it was edible. She must have seen this as well because she then started to explain to him what it contained.

"It is simple really," she began to explain, "All it is is mashed potatoes with boiled kale and bacon in it. It does sound unappetizing, but it is really good, especially with some salt," she said, smiling up at Suzaku as he looked at his spoonful. He then opened his mouth wide and shoved the spoon in, figuring that it was now or never. It wasn't that shocking that he found the mash to be extremely delicious.

"This is very good! Thank you!" he said genuinely, a large smile gracing his features.

"Well, I am glad that you like it," she said happily. "If you want, I could out some of it in a container for you to take."

"That would be gre-" he started to say, but that was when he finally spotted the clock. It had been exactly 67 minutes since he had spoken to Carine.

"Oh shit! Thank you, but I have to go!!" he yelled over his shoulder as he sprinted out of the kitchen towards Lelouch's chambers.

"You're welcome!" she called back, but at that point Suzaku was too far away to hear her.

"Shit!" he yelled out loud as he ran through the corridors. 'How could I have been so careless as to not watch the time!?' he scolded himself.

As he began to near Lelouch's private chambers he slowed his pace so that he was no longer running, but merely walking quite quickly. He didn't want to be out of breath and sweaty when he arrived. Plus, walking gave him a bit more time to gather his thoughts so that he could be prepared for whatever Lelouch had to say to him.

Suzaku advanced down the corridor at a rapid pace, careful to watch his step though this time so as to not bump into someone. The substantially colossal, dark cherry, wood door was coming into view.

Lelouch had chosen to have his private quarters in the very rear of the imperial palace. He had informed Suzaku that this was because he wanted to make the more spacious and easily accessible rooms for other people. One of these people being Suzaku. He had a feeling though that what Lelouch said was only partly true, that he really just wanted to be left alone and to have some quiet space to think. And plus, the room that was originally going to be his had been taken by none other than C.C. who claimed that the room in question had previously been hers and that it was still, and always would be as she said, rightfully hers. Of course Lelouch, knowing that it would be utterly pointless to argue with the green haired witch, just let her have it. So that left Lelouch all the way back here.

'Kinda creepy back here… I am surprised that there are not cobwebs and skeletons all over down here.' Suzaku peered around the eerily empty and quiet corridor as he quickly made the last leg of the journey towards Lelouch's rooms. Before it knew it he was standing in front of the ominously large door with his fist raised. But something was stopping him from knocking. He had a bad feeling about this. Something was not right, out of place. He couldn't quite place his finger on it though. Instead of dwelling on this though, he connected his fist with the door.

"KKUH-KKUH-KKUH" There was a slight echo somewhere off in the distance.

"Come in!" the greeting was somewhat muffled by the thickness of the door, but Suzaku heard it anyways and let himself in.

On the other side of the door was not Lelouch's bedroom directly. It was similar to that of a small house, first there was some sort of entry/hallway thingy, then there was a sitting room, and then there was a study of sorts, and then _finally_ after that was Lelouch's bedroom. Somewhere in between all of that was a bathroomSuzaku knew all of this because he had been there many times before. (No! Not for reasons that you are thinking of, you dirty perverts!)

Judging by just how much the voice had echoed, Suzaku guessed that Lelouch was in the sitting room area. He closed the door behind him and made his way over. Upon seeing Lelouch, Suzaku immediately got onto his knees to bow before his emperor.

"Your highn-"

"Suzaku, how many times do I have to tell you. Don't use all of those formalities around me. We have known each other too long for you to degrade yourself like that." A light smile graced his angelic features as Suzaku looked up. "Do it again and I will beat you up," Lelouch threatened, only half kidding.

"Pfffft! We all know you have just about the physical power of a newborn kitten," Suzaku laughed out loud.

Lelouch shot him an evil death glare; "Fine then, I will have someone beat you up for me!" Suzaku, still laughing, walked over to the chair that had been placed across from Lelouch and plopped himself down. He wiped away the tears that had begun to form around the corners of his eyes and then looked Lelouch straight in the face.

"So, what is it that I can help you with today, your highness," he said teasingly, a playful smile still on his face. On that note Lelouch's face darkened and immediately turned serious.

"Suzaku…" Suzaku could tell that Lelouch was at a loss for words. The smile slipped off of Suzaku's face as soon as he realized just how serious whatever Lelouch was going to tell him was.

"Suzaku, I have a favor to ask of you…" he said faintly, his eyes cast downwards towards the floor.

"What is it? You know that I would do anything for you! I would give my life for you Lelouch!" Suzaku said this blatantly, not a doubt in his mind that the statement was full of sincerity.

"I know that Suzaku, but what I am going to ask you is going to be harder than putting your own life on the line." Lelouch paused, not quite sure how to get the next part of his sentence out.

Suzaku was sitting on the edge of his chair. 'What could be so hard for him that he would be like this? It must be horrible if it gets him into this state of uncertainty… No matter what it is though, I will see it through with and for him.'

Lelouch finally spoke up, breaking the awkward silence between them. "Suzaku, I need you to become Zero… And kill me."

Suzaku blanched. Time froze around him. Nothing before this moment in time had prepared him for this. He had come in here today expecting it to be just the routine "Suzaku, where do you think that I should attack to get this country to follow?" or "Hey Suzaku, haven't seen you in a while. Just thought that I would say hi."

The next thing he knew Lelouch was standing in front of him, waving his hand back and forth in front of his face. 'No.' that was meant to be said out loud, but Suzaku was loathe to find his voice amongst all of his churning emotions. 'No!' One more time.

"NO!" he shouted bluntly, right in Lelouch's face. This startled him causing him to back away more quickly than his feet could move. His feet didn't catch up and he ended up falling on his ass.

"Who the hell do you think you are, asking me to do something like that?! Did you honestly expect me go along with this stupid little plan of yours? Are you fucking crazy?!"

Lelouch just stared up at him, not moving at all, but just letting Suzaku vent his anger freely. Suzaku was flailing his arms around like a crazy person. There was no real pattern at all to his movements, so Lelouch had no way to tell where he was going to be next.

Suzaku walked over to a rather large vase and took it by the handle and flung it with all of his might towards the wall. It shattered into a million little pieces, the pieces flying everywhere and breaking even more when they hit other things. Some of them even embedded themselves into Lelouch and Suzaku's clothing, many of them spraying Lelouch's sitting figure and dusting his raven black hair with glass.

"Fuck, Lelouch! Why? Why would you even ask such a thing?" Suzaku's voice had grown softer and he had stopped pacing around the room and making gestures like a mad man.

He stopped in front of Lelouch and reached out for his hand so that he could help him up. Lelouch was hesitant at first, he was not sure if Suzaku was suddenly going to go off on another fit of rage and fling him at a wall like he had done to that oh so fragile vase. That would hurt. A lot.

Suzaku saw the hesitation in his face so he said softly, "Don't worry Lelouch. I am done. All I want to know is why. Why would you ask for such a thing? Especially from me of all people that you could have asked…"

Lelouch grabbed his hand and Suzaku proceeded to pull him up. They were standing dangerously close together. A little too close for comfort, but Suzaku would not let go of Lelouch's hand. At least not until he had answered his question. Lelouch squirmed a little bit at their closeness, but then stopped when Suzaku squeezed his a hand a little. Not in any way that would hurt, but in the kind of way that you do to people when you are trying to comfort them or reassure them.

"Please Lelouch. Why?" Suzaku looked at him with a pleading look in his deep emerald green eyes.

"Suzaku, there is not much to explain. I thought I was pretty direct when I asked you. I need you to do this for me." He stared Suzaku straight in the face as he said this. There was not much more for him to say.

"Suzaku, it is necessary that I die, but it is also necessary that you are the one to kill me. You must take my place as Zero. If you do this, then the world just might be able to achieve peace. All you have to do is erase my existence and put an end to this chain of hatred. The world needs someone to lead them to a better and brighter future. Nunnally needs that someone. You need to be that someone, Suzaku. With you as Zero, the Black Knights will have the legend of Zero left behind for them. Schneizel has been ordered to and will work from now on under you as Zero. And now the world can be unified at one table, not through military force, but through negotiation and talk. You can now embrace the future." The way Lelouch said this, it was almost as if he was sure that this plan was absolutely fool proof.

"Lelouch, if this is what you really want me to do…" Suzaku began to say, hesitantly.

"No Suzaku. It is not what I want you to do, but in all reality what I need you to do. For me, Suzaku. And then if not for me, then for the world and for your future."

"How is this going to work in my favor exactly? This seems to be more of a punishment for me than anything else." At this point Suzaku was looking for any way out of doing this. There was no way in hell that he was going to kill his best friend. Even if he had to use guilt as a tactic, he would run with it.

"It is an honor though, Suzaku. You will become Zero, savior of the world. Your actions as Zero will deliver this world from the hell hole that I have dug it into during my reign as emperor," Lelouch stated, quite sure of himself.

"You will be the defender of justice and the hero that saved the world from that evil monster, Emperor Lelouch vi Britannia," Lelouch said encouragingly, but this only made Suzaku feel worse.

"Lelouch that is why I can't do this! You have done nothing, but try to help others! I mean sure, you killed Euphemia, but that was all an accident! You told me yourself!" Suzaku had been holding Lelouch's hand that entire time, but dropped it at that moment and grabbed him by his shoulders.

Lelouch continued from where he had left off. "Those who shoot should be prepared to be shot at." This is also a punishment for you, Suzaku. You will be forced to wear the mask of Zero for the rest of your life. You will no longer be able to live as Suzaku Kururugi. You will sacrifice all of your own happiness for the world…eternally… You compelled me to go this far, now I need you to finish it, Suzaku."

Suzaku just stared at Lelouch blankly. He had no idea as to what to say. He was at a loss for words. A single tear began to roll down his cheek, more threatening to fall as his large emerald eyes began to become moist. Suzaku still had Lelouch by the shoulders, but at that point he was at a loss and his arms fell deftly to his sides after having slid off of Lelouch's shoulders. He could tell that Lelouch didn't know what to say either. They just stood there silently, the seconds ticking slowly by. It seemed like hours though to Suzaku.

Slowly, Lelouch lifted a hand up and softly brushed away the single tear that was trailing down Suzaku's tanned cheek. The feeling of Lelouch hand against his cheek snapped him back into reality. He suddenly grabbed Lelouch and pulled him into a tight hug. He buried his face into the crevice between Lelouch's neck and shoulder, the glass that was still in his hair making light scratches on Suzaku's cheeks. He held him tighter still, not wanting to ever let go. He could feel Lelouch tense against his body, clearly shocked from the spontaneity of the hug he had received, but then his body slowly relaxed as he let himself be hugged.

Lelouch's arms snaked there way around Suzaku's waist as he hugged the brown haired boy back, but his hug was a little less desperate than Suzaku's was. Lelouch leaned his head against Suzaku's, his brown locks tickling the raven-haired boy's face. Lelouch could feel the shoulder of his outfit moisten as angry tears poured from the vast emerald eyes that belonged to Suzaku, and Lelouch just hugged him tighter.

"I am sorry," Lelouch whispered in the boy's ear softly. They stood there like that for what seemed like ages, Lelouch continuing to whisper apologies and reassurances into Suzaku's ear.

Suzaku was angry. Angry with himself for making Lelouch feel guilty for having trusted him with something so important to him. Angry at Lelouch for having asked such a thing of him. Angry at the world for not seeing the true intentions of Emperor Lelouch. Angry. Just plain angry.

"I'll do it," Suzaku mumbled into Lelouch's shoulder, his words completely muffled by the cloth. Lelouch had understood anyways though.

"No Suzaku. I cannot believe that I asked such a thing of you. I don't want you to be the one who has to do this."

"I said that I would do it!" Suzaku said louder this time. "After asking that of me, how do you expect me to not follow through with it? I can't just abandon you for my own feelings," Suzaku mumbled, trying to out on a brave face.

"You have no idea how much this means to me, Suzaku. I will forever and always be indebted to you," he said gratefully, kissing Suzaku lightly on the forehead. The feeling of Lelouch lips grazing his forehead sent a shiver down Suzaku's spine. Lelouch unwound his arms from around Suzaku's waist and pulled himself away from his warm embrace.

"I have some things that I need to attend to before all of this can be set into play. I will call you back in a few hours once I have gotten everything arranged so that I can ell you of our plan from there," Lelouch said these things as he turned away form Suzaku, making his way deeper into his private chambers, probably towards his study.

He passed through the large doorway that led deeper in, but before he disappeared completely he reached for the door and then said, "Goodbye, Suzaku." And with that, Suzaku watched the door close behind him with a loud "CLICK."

His feet felt as if they were glued and nailed to the floor all at the same time. He couldn't move and he could barely even breathe. He stared after Lelouch, maybe hoping that the door that separated them would burst into flames and they would be together once more.

That was when he heard a slight rustling to the left of him. He would have turned to see what it was, but he was still in shock and unable to move in the slightest bit.

"KRRR-KRRR." There was that rustling sound again. It was getting to be the slightest bit annoying. The last thing he wanted to do was have to beat the crap out of some eavesdropper after having just been told that he was supposed to kill his one and only best friend. That was devastating.

The room was silent once more, but he could feel a presence beside his own though. That was when he felt the dainty, yet attention grabbing, taps on his right shoulder.

This was what finally broke him out of his daze and he just about jumped through the ceiling with fear. He turned around swiftly, legs spread in a fighting stance and arms raised ready to box somebody out. What shocked him was that the only person behind him was Sayoko, Lelouch's ninja maid.

He immediately lowered his arms as to not offend her, because you definitely do not mess with someone like Sayoko. Unless, of course, you wanted to die.

"M-mi-miss S-Sayoko!" Suzaku exclaimed in surprise. "What is it that I could help you with today?" he asked, trying to put on a smile for her.

"You can drop the pleasant act Suzaku," she said emotionlessly.

"I know what has just been conversed in this very room and I can not allow it to happen." Suzaku was just a little bit puzzled.

"W-what do you m-m-mean?" he stammered, curious as to just how much she really knew.

"You know exactly what I am talking about Suzaku. I heard every single word that Lelouch said to you and I cannot allow it to happen. Lelouch asked you to kill him did he not?" This was a rhetorical question because clearly she already knew the answer. Suzaku was dumbfounded.

He quickly looked around the room for places one might hide, but came up completely blank. 'How does she know all of this and where would she have been hiding?' he asked himself hesitantly.

She must have been able to read these questions on his face because she then proceeded to say in her toneless voice, "No, I was not hiding anywhere in this room. And no, I will not tell you how I came to know the information that I do because that is of no importance at the moment. We have bigger things to worry about other than my eavesdropping."

"What are you talking about? What do you thin that you can accomplish? Lelouch has his mind dead set on this plan of his and there is no way that you or I or anyone else for that matter can do to change it," he had not meant to come off so rudely, but his tone clearly portrayed this.

She did not seem to take any notice to this at all though because she just continued, "No, alone we cannot do anything, but together you and I can stop this madness. There is only one thing that I require you to do," she said, her voice was almost robotic. Her eyes were dull, but mischievousness and intelligence could be seen clearly behind them.

'What could she possibly be planning that would put an end to all of this?' he wondered to himself, all of his attention focused on what it was that she was saying to him.

"Do you want Lelouch to live?" she asked, this time it was a real question even though there was a lack of inquiry in her voice.

"More than anything! You have no idea what lengths I would go to to stop him from doing this!" he exclaimed.

"Good. Then I have something that we can do. There is only one single thing that I need from you. We are going to follow Lelouch's plan to the very dot, however…" she paused as if to mull over what she was about to say.

'Sayoko is uncertain about something? That is definitely a first…'

What she said next shocked him as badly as when Lelouch told him that he was to kill him. In fact, it may have even shocked him worse than that had. He blanched a pure, snow white, unsure of how to respond correctly to such a ridiculous request.

She looked him straight in the eye, piercing him into his very soul and said, "Suzaku, I want you to kill me in Lelouch's stead."

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A/N: So, what did you think? I would really like to know XD. Oh and I am really sorry for the ending author's note of last chapter. I went back to reread that chapter and saw that. My reaction was, "......O.O......:O.....wow...." I meant like a hamster not anything dirty cuz I is a chick XD

Question: I am curious as to what you guys would think if I switched this up to M rated and made it a yaoi. I was already debating it, but I would like to know your opinions of it before I did anything.

Please review and tell me what you would think if the rating went up XD


	4. Chapter 4

Ah, well it's been a while, but I finally got it up! yay! As said in the new summary, M for later chapters XD

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"Suzaku, I want you to kill me in Lelouch's stead," she said tonelessly, staring at him with a look saying, "I know exactly what I am asking and if you refuse, you will regret it dearly."

His jaw dropped, face turning an unnaturally white color. "H-how can you even ask me to do such a thing?!" he exclaimed, wondering why it was that everyone was asking him to kill them today. Did he look like the type of person that was more than willing to assist with another's death?

Her expression did not change, but the tone in her voice sharpened, "Don't you dare direct your anger towards me. Just moments ago you agreed to kill one of your closest friends. I am giving you a way out of such a predicament."

He quickly snapped his mouth closed, realizing that he was still gaping at her. She had a point, but that did not mean that he was going to agree with her either.

He opened and closed his mouth a few times, things he wanted to say to her on the tip of his tongue, but some how he was unable to articulate them. She waited patiently.

'What is she even planning? How does she think that we could get away with such a thing? Lelouch would never agree to this. I can't kill her or Lelouch!' His thoughts were jumbled into a bunch of 'what ifs' and 'hows'.

He dropped down into the seat behind him, putting his face in his hands. This was too much for Suzaku to take in all at once.

Sayoko just stood there, arms at her sides and a blank look on her face. She knew that he was struggling to sort everything out, but he needed to get a move on things because they did not have much time to get a foolproof plan in gear. She had pretty much worked everything out already except for one little factor: Lelouch. Well, maybe that wasn't such a little factor, especially considering that the plan revolved around him. That was where she needed Suzaku. Besides needing him to play the part of Zero, she needed his help to work out some of the smaller details.

The seconds were ticking by and turning into minutes. Minutes that they did not have to spare. Just as she was about to say something to bring Suzaku back to the real world, he brought his face up and looked her in the eye. His bright emerald eyes seemed to be trying to read her very thoughts. A few more seconds passed as he tried to process what he was about to say.

Finally forming the words, he managed to get out one of the many questions that was racing through his mind, "How do you suggest we pull this off exactly?"

Bingo. She took this question as an unsaid agreement to help her fulfill her plan. Sayoko turned her back to him, facing the round table that was set against the wall beside the chair Lelouch had been sitting in. Although Suzaku hadn't noticed it, Lelouch had set the Zero mask atop the table, apparently forgetting to give it to Suzaku before he had departed. She ran her fingers along the ornate carvings on the edge of the table, Suzaku watching her every move, unsure of what she was going to do or say next.

Sayoko picked up the midnight black helmet from the table, turning it around slowly in her hands; her nimble fingers almost caressing the cool dark plastic, as if it were sacred. She twirled back around to face Suzaku, her dress swirling around her slight figure and the Zero helmet still clasped tightly in her delicate, but strong hands. His expression did not falter as she looked down at him, her gaze sharper than before.

"To put it simply, your job will be the same as if I had never asked you to do this. You will be doing the exact same thing that Lelouch commanded you to do, however with a few minor adjustments. One, it will no longer be Master Lamperouge that you are killing, but me in his stead, dressed up exactly like him."

He opened his mouth to ask a question, but Sayoko held up her hand before he could utter a single word.

"No, you will not be able to tell that it is me. There will be absolutely no difference or way to tell that it is me," she answered, knowing that that was the question he was going to ask because he immediately sat back in his chair after she finished.

"Second," she continued, "Lelouch. I am not quite sure exactly what to do with him yet. Clearly we cannot tell him of our plans, because he would swiftly refuse and find someone else to execute his original idea in our stead. He would have to be placed somewhere secretly, because obviously after "he" is killed, he cannot be seen by the public eye. Ever again."

It was Suzaku's turn to speak this time. "Although it is not very secluded, I have an apartment around this area that he could be taken to so that he is not seen. I'm not sure how I would move him after the fact or how I would make him stay put, but it gives us some kind of option. Does C.C. know about this already?"

Sayoko pondered this for a moment, not quite sure on either point. "Well that could work, with the right preparation that is. And, by now, I am quite positive that she is aware of our intentions, however she will not interfere. If anything, she finds this highly amusing and doesn't wish to destroy her chances at watching a great show. Don't bother asking for her assistance either. Only after all of this goes down will she appear again to assist you or Lelouch."

Suzaku could imagine the green-haired witch now, laughing hysterically at their pretty much futile attempt at changing fate that had already been decided. Her amber eyes twinkling with delight as they sat here, wasting away the last few precious moments that they had before it was time to exact their plan.

Except, that was the farthest thing from what she was actually doing at that moment, but he didn't know that. He also didn't know that right now, C.C. was as worried as he was.

His attention was brought back as Sayoko began to pace the large room. Clearly this was eating away at her because her normally laid back façade was slowly chipping away as each minute passed. She still had that god-forsaken mask cradled in her arms.

Suzaku ran his fingers through his curly, chocolate brown locks.

"Well, ya' know I have some rope and chains as well."

She raised an eyebrow as he said this, but then composed her face again before he could see it.

"We could bind Lelouch in my apartment and that way we would know that he would be safe there. I would find some way to eventually gain his trust back and then I could disguise him and take him back to Japan…" he suggested hesitantly.

Sayoko had stopped pacing at this point. She raised the hunk of black plastic to her face and rested her chin on it, turned slightly so that she could only see Suzaku through her peripheral vision.

He looked like a tired old man, hunched over with his face back in his hands. This was taking quite a toll on him, and her for that matter. She turned to face him, throwing the helmet in his direction. He looked up just in time to see the heavy object hurtling towards him at a speed that would have been extremely painful had it made contact, but he reached up with quick reflexes to catch it smoothly in his arms.

"Go home."

"What? But what about Lelouch and tomorrow and-"

He was swiftly cut off as Sayoko raised a hand in the air.

"I said, go home. I will figure some way to get Lelouch to your apartment or I will come up with my own way to hide him. Just take that," she gestured towards the mask in his hands, "and go home. We have discussed this matter long enough and should be readily prepared by now. Don't think about it until tomorrow and sleep as well as you are able. You'll need it Master Suzaku." She finished with a small bow and then disappeared.

He stood up and twisted the mask in his hands like the ninja maid had done previously.

'Nothing abnormal about this,' he thought, as he observed and noted every scratch and ding in the mask.

He sighed loudly, wishing that he could just turn time backwards to a time when things were less complicated. Much less complicated. Not that he even knew when a time like that was, but even if he had, wishing wasn't going to get him anywhere at this point.

He briskly walked out of the ornately decorated room, thinking, 'I know what I am…and this isn't it.'

Suzaku jolted up with a start. The memories in his head were so vibrant, as if he were reliving them second by second.

He looked around absently. "Where the hell-" 'Oh, that's right.'

He was in the park. It was no longer nightfall, but sometime late in the night. The sky was pitch black and he could barely see five feet in front of him. The only thing that remained the same was the fact that it was still as eerily silent now as it had been before he passed out.

His whole body was aching from lying on the cold hard ground for God only knows how long. He stretched, feeling the joints of his back crack obscenely. Standing up, he tried to take in his surroundings, but that was kind of hard considering that he really couldn't see. There were no street lights, or lights coming from any direction. The not exactly see-through mask didn't help matters much either.

He yanked it off of his head, the cool breeze a nice relief from the hot confines of the thick helmet. Suzaku peeled the cover on his mouth and nose off of his face, looking around now that his field of vision had increased significantly.

It hit him like a ton of bricks. How did he not notice it before?! He knew exactly where he was at, approximately a mile or so away from his apartment building. He slapped himself in the forehead.

'How could I have been so stupid as to not have noticed this before?' He stopped verbally beating himself up and started running, almost dropping the mask. Heavy droplets of water began falling on his head and rebounding off of the helmet. He didn't feel the need to put it back on though, because there still weren't any lights anywhere around, or people for that matter.

At first the rain drops were few and far between, but now they were becoming more frequent, the rough drizzle turning into an even harsher downpour. He kept running though.

So close to his final destination, he could taste it. Sure, he wasn't exactly looking forward to facing an extremely angry Lelouch, but that was better than being outside in the rain, dressed as a terrorist, and tired as hell even though he had probably just slept a good four hours.

Suzaku could see a glow in the distance, a sign that he was about to reach the first of the streetlights. He halted mid-stride.

"Shit," he muttered. How was he supposed to get in the apartment complex dressed like this?

Suzaku looked down at his now completely soaked costume. There was also the fact that he was technically supposed to be dead as well. If he got recognized, which wasn't that rare of an occurrence prior to his "death", a whole lot of hit would hit the fan. It might even make Sayoko's sacrifice go in vain.

He pulled off the cloak and stuffed part of it in the mask and wrapped the remaining part around the rest of the helmet, somewhat concealing it. Next off came the white neckerchief and the purple and gold coat, leaving only the pants and the vest that was underneath the coat.

'Hmm I wonder what people would think if they saw Zero stripping in public…' he thought with a grin.

He chuckled softly to himself as he pulled off the vest as well, wadding it into a ball along with the other clothing items. They weren't exactly light either because they were weighed down with water, but it was better than nothing…kind of… He looked back down at himself, approving.

"Well at least no one will recognize me with just a quick glance…" he muttered.

Holding the wet clothing and the wrapped mask close to his chest, he continued to run through the rain, closing the distance between himself and the front entrance to his apartment complex.

Stopping quickly behind a tree to take a quick glance around, Suzaku bolted across the street and into the front door. He didn't stop at all, racing up seven flights of stairs and through another door. Luckily, not many people took the stairs, opting for the elevator instead and there was also the fact that it was pretty late at night; he slowed his pace and walked somewhat slowly down the overly wide hallway, pulling the slick key out of one of his wet pockets as he reached his door and shoving it into the slot, turning it roughly. He pushed the door closed softly, not wanting to wake a hopefully sleeping Lelouch.

There were no lights on in the average sized apartment, which was just the way Suzaku had left it early this morning.

He sank silently down against the door, not yet ready to face Lelouch if he was awake. Gently putting the soggy clothes down beside him, he tilted his head back to look up at the ceiling, closing his eyes at the same time.

Saying that it had been a long day would be an understatement. Nothing he had ever done or ever would do would compare to this. He knew it was only going to get worse. Lelouch wouldn't understand. He wouldn't understand that this had all been for him. All he would see was that Suzaku had killed one of his childhood friends and betrayed his trust. He wouldn't be able to wrap his mind around the fact that Suzaku was going through just as much pain as he was right now, knowing that he was the one that had caused all of this made it all the worse.

He pushed himself up, leaving the sodden clothes to create a puddle on the hardwood floor next to the door. He silently tiptoed down the short hallway, past the kitchen and the family room to the closed door at the end.

He put his hand on the doorknob; Suzaku's heart felt like it was trying to break out of his chest. It was beating at an impossibly fast rate, ba-bump! Ba-bump! Ba-bump! Like a horse galloping with hell on it's heels. He took a deep breath and slowly turned the knob, pushing open the door slowly so as to not make too much noise.

The room was dark like the rest of the house and was completely silent. Suzaku couldn't even hear Lelouch breathing. That worried him a little. He crept over to the bed where Lelouch had been chained earlier this morning, only able to see his outline on the bed by the moonlight.

"H-hey!!" The next thing Suzaku knew, he was pinned to the floor; Lelouch was sitting on his chest, one hand wrapped around his neck and the other still chained to the bed. He wasn't choking him, merely threatening to by having his hand around his throat.

"You… Asshole!" Lelouch growled angrily, tightening his grip ever so slightly on Suzaku's throat.

"L-Lelouch-get off!" Suzaku grunted.

Although Lelouch was really light, he wasn't feather-light and it was hard to breathe with him sitting on his chest. Lelouch stayed right where he was.

"What the hell is your problem?! I trusted you!"

There was a murderous glint in Lelouch's eyes, his anger clearly written on his face. Then the anger left, only to be replaced by sadness.

"W-why?" he choked out, looking like he was on the verge of tears.

The grip on Suzaku's throat loosened immensely, even though it wasn't that tight to begin with. Suzaku grabbed Lelouch's wrist and put his other hand on his hip, flipping them over so that Suzaku was now on top. He couldn't move him far because Lelouch still had one wrist chained to the bed.

"You have no idea what you are talking about," Suzaku snarled.

"I thought you were my friend Suzaku." The look on his face was pathetic, like a lost little puppy.

"I am and that is why I did this! You think I did this willingly? It wasn't even my idea. Sayoko was the one that proposed it to me, saying that it was the only way that I could save your life."

At the mention of her name, Lelouch winced the slightest bit.

"We did all of this for you. I am your friend and that is why I went through with it. Do you understand that?"

Lelouch nodded his head slightly, shifting a little under Suzaku's weight.

"How did you get out of that other chain anyways?" Suzaku asked with genuine curiosity.

Suzaku lifted up his wrist and examined it in the moonlight. It was bright red and raw looking. Almost all the skin on it was rubbed off, it looked like some areas had been bleeding, but were scabbed over now.

He sighed softly, "Lelouch…"

"I didn't have any other options. You moved everything that I could have used to pick the lock out of my reach. I resorted to the next option and pulled it off…"

His cheeks turned a slight pink, like what he was saying was like admitting defeat. It was so adorable; well at least in Suzaku's opinion. Lelouch's eyes widened in shock as he felt warm lips touch his own.

'He is just too adorable for his own good.' Suzaku pulled back a moment later, Lelouch still had a surprised look on his face.

"I did all of this because I am your friend and I love you…" Suzaku muttered embarrassedly.

Just then, the door opened and the overhead light shot on.

"Well, having fun, are we boys?" a voice in the entrance of the room laughed.

Suzaku shot up, jumping away from Lelouch; Lelouch sitting up and scooting to the wall.

"I-it wasn't like that," the raven-haired boy muttered.

"Oh, suuuuuuuurrre. I totally believe that nothing was going on at all! I mean, with Suzaku on top of you, the first thing I would assume is that you guys are talking about the weather," the lime green-haired witch chuckled to herself.

Lelouch looked away and Suzaku flushed a bright crimson red. Lelouch jangled the chains that still held his wrist. This caught both C.C. and Suzaku's attention.

"Oh ho! I see you boys like it kinky." She had a large grin on her face like the Cheshire cat.

Suzaku turned an even deeper red, if that were possible.

"Can you please, you know, take care of this please?" the violet-eyed boy murmured from his place on the floor.

"I could just leave you two to finish your business," she giggled, walking out the door and waving her hand over her shoulder.

Lelouch glared after her and stood up, Suzaku pulled out his key ring and unlocked the last handcuff around the other boy's wrist. He rubbed his wrist tenderly, not looking Suzaku in the face.

The emerald-eyed boy walked over to his dresser, grabbed a couple pairs of pants and t-shirts, and tossed one of each to the other boy.

"Um, you can just sleep in here. I'll go sleep on the couch or something after I figure out if the witch is going to stay with us too," he said as he was walking through the doorway.

"You can just send her in here," he said as he unfolded the shirt that was clearly too big for him. Suzaku looked back over his shoulder.

"O…k…"

A few minutes later, a still giggling C.C. walked in. Seeing that Lelouch already had on the borrowed clothes and was in the bed, she turned off the lights. Gliding smoothly over the floor, she climbed into bed next to the slight boy, curling up next against his back.

"So, did you have fun while I was away?" she snickered.

"Fuck you."

"Oh, no. I'm pretty sure that you would rather do that with someone else." This was way too easy for her. She received no response to this little jab. She sighed and patted his shoulder softly.

"I love you too," she said softly, but he was already asleep.

* * *

A/N: Well, that was fairly short compared to my last chapter, but that was a spur of the moment kind of thing... Hmmm I guess since I upped the rating, now I will have to put the M rated material up pretty soon XD

Sorry if there are multiple mistakes, but it is really early in the morning (4 am) and I knew that if I didn't get this out now, then it might not have happened for another month or so, with school starting and all. Not that I updated often anyways, but now I have everything up to date X3

Ok, I have a proposition for all of you, my few and far between readers. If I can get up to 50 reviews by the posting of chapter 6, then I will write and post a totally new, _3-way_, yaoi, Code Geass fic. It will be multi-chaptered and it has nothing to do with this is a completely different offer than the one that I put up for _The Less You Know, the Better_. Well, same offer, but two totally different fics written for each XD Oh, I have been busy (mwahahahaha) Any questions, feel free to ask

REVIEWS, REVIEWS, REVIEWS! Gotta love 'em, so please leave them!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hello! Hard to believe its been almost, what, 4 months? XD I just noticed that the Code Geass fanfic section has finally hit over 3,000 fanfics! That is definitely something to be proud of guys and gals, keep up the writing!

Anyways, on a more relevant note, this is basically just like a filler chapter, something to push things along slightly. Imagine it's like an episode of Naruto. But yeah, this is just something short-ish and pointless, because next chapter is when the serious things start happening, for Lelouch and Suzaku's relationship and the whole "What the hell is Lelouch gonna do now that he is alive and not the emperor?" bit.

* * *

"Urrgh!" the dark-haired boy groaned as he stretched his stiff muscles, raising his arms over his head and squeezing his eyes shut against the sun streaming through the window. It felt too early to be even considering being awake, except the way that the sun shined through the windows it was probably after ten.

He groaned again and then sat up with difficulty, cracking open one eye and looking around. Then both his eyes widened and he turned his head rapidly, scouring the strange room with his eyes. He shook his head and then opened his eyes once more, but the room had yet to change into the desired one. J

ust as he was about to freak out and go through the, "Oh my God, have I been abducted? By who?! I don't remember giving that internet stalker my address! Oh no!" thoughts, Lelouch finally remembered what was going on.

"Suzaku," he groaned, everything flooding back from the past day and a half. He flopped back down against the pillows and stared up at the ceiling. This was going to be a very long day.

He shifted uncomfortably, the over-sized clothes that he had borrowed from Suzaku the night before had tangled and bunched up in various areas of his body, making for an even more aggravated Lelouch. As he lay there he tried to gather his thoughts. What was there for him to do now? What kind of life would he have now that he was legally and officially dead, unable to freely walk the streets anywhere without the chance of being recognized?

And then there was Suzaku. That idiot. He was bound to screw up eventually, and Lelouch wasn't even in any position to help him. It was hard to notice the good qualities of Suzaku when there were just so many things wrong. He was an idiot, and Lelouch wasn't even saying that to be cruel, he was in fact stupid as hell. Not to mention the fact that he was tactically inept and used to need help finding the student council room at Ashford Academy more often than not. And he was too nice. Much too nice. Zero needed the ability to show a person who was boss, and Suzaku clearly did not have that ability, bending to the will of a cute kitten in an alleyway.

"The world is doomed…" Lelouch muttered, using his hands to cover his eyes to block out more of the sun that was shining in his face.

Sure, Suzaku had good qualities, but most everyone had at least one. Well, except Schneizel, but that was a different story for a different day. 'He is kind…' Lelouch thought absently, letting his mind wander over the thought of his best friend. 'He is a good Knightmare pilot, loyal, nice smile, soft-looking hair, a nice, toned body…'

Lelouch's eyes opened wide and he shot up in bed, shaking his head and trying to force away that last stray thought. Slightly more irritated than before, he straightened the large clothes over his slight frame and went to stand up out of bed. Only, somewhere along the way his plan failed. CRASH!!! Face + floor= a very unhappy Lelouch, which could be noted as an understatement.

"What the hell?!" he yelled, bewildered, his shout muffled by the fact that his face was flush up against the hard wooden floor. It was an awkward position as well, his face pressed against the floor, one leg pinned uncomfortably beneath him and the other caught by something up on the bed, his arms on either side of him.

He tried to get up, but whatever had caught his leg was holding it fast. Turning slightly so that he wasn't lying on his face anymore, he saw that his ankle was cuffed to the bedpost, a chain secured tightly around his thin ankle and the thick wooden post, ensuring his inability to escape. This was going to be a long day indeed.

"God damnit Suzaku!" he growled angrily, silently vowing to kill his idiot of a friend the next chance that he got. 'That asshole didn't even trust me enough to let me wander around the apartment!'

He was fuming. If looks could kill, the one painted across Lelouch's face most certainly would.

While he was busy seething and working on a method to pull himself back up onto the bed, a certain green haired witch silently opened the door to the bedroom and leisurely glided in. Lelouch didn't even notice the other until she had her arms hooked under his and was pushing him back up onto the bed with strength that no one would have guessed that she possessed.

She looked at him nonchalantly and cooed, "How is my favorite little terrorist today?" she asked, not really caring to receive an answer as much as she just wanted to get a rise out of Lelouch.

She patted his head like an innocent little girl would do to her beloved puppy. However, Lelouch was not a puppy, although he was growling like one, and C.C. was far from innocent, and, as far as Lelouch was concerned, she was not a girl, but an evil witch sent by the gods to make his life a living a hell. Apparently they really didn't like him that much.

"Unchain me from the bed witch," he demanded angrily, glowering at her as she crossed the room and sank into an armchair that resided there. She sighed as she stared at her hands, searching for nonexistent particles of dirt.

"You as well as I know that I cannot do that Lelouch, as much as I truly, truly want to." She gave him a mock look that was supposed to be heartfelt and caring.

"Damnit C.C. We both know that you can do whatever the hell it is you want, restrictions and rules don't apply to you." She smirked at this, acknowledgement as any that she knew this was true. "So why, exactly, are you not over here uncuffing me from this bedpost?" he rattled the chain slightly to emphasize his point.

Again she was staring at her hands, admiring how long and pretty her nails had gotten. She looked up into his face, deep amber eyes meeting his violet ones.

"Suzaku asked me not to," she stated simply.

Lelouch laughed scornfully. "And you are going to listen to him, of all people?"

"No," she replied tonelessly, moving from observing her hands to her hair, searching for split ends.

"Ok then, unchain me," Lelouch said, not seeing the point of C.C. not immediately getting up and coming to his aid.

"No."

"Why not?!" he asked exasperatedly.

She looked up at him with an evilly chilling grin on her face. "Because, this is highly entertaining for me, to watch you struggle," she answered with a chuckle. She looked back down at her perfect green hair and added, "Plus, the brunette promised me pizza."

He stared at her, blankly. Pizza, of course. "Why can't I just buy you some pizza? I would buy you as much as you wanted if you just unchained me," he said, thinking that he had finally found his freedom by buying it from the green-haired woman with the promise of the cheesy, artery clogging, treat that she oh so adored.

She glanced up at him with a glint in her eyes, however she made no move at getting up from the chair. She stretched languidly, like a cat just waking from a nap in the sun. It looked like she had already given this proposition some thought.

"I would unchain you under those conditions," she began, finally getting up and approaching the bed where Lelouch was residing. "But, remember that you are supposedly dead, so all of your credit cards would be declined," she finished with a small smile, tapping him lightly on the nose.

He cursed under his breath as she made her way slowly back to the chair in the other side of the room. He had completely forgotten that he was without money to even bribe the girl with. The raven-haired boy dropped his head back into the pillows, knowing it was hopeless to try and get in between the witch and her pizza.

And speak of the devil, just as Lelouch was thinking of all the ways that could lead to the untimely demise of a certain brunette, the front door opened and shut, bags rustling as they were set down on the tile of the kitchen and then the sound of footsteps approaching the bedroom.

None other than Suzaku entered, carrying an extra large, cheese pizza and handing it to C.C., who accepted it like a starving dog would accept a large steak, before he turned to sheepishly acknowledge the chained up Lelouch. He scratched his head a bit nervously, awaiting the violet-eyed boy's wrath.

"Umm, so I see that you're finally awake… Good morning." He smiled nervously. None of Lelouch's emotions betrayed him, he just watched Suzaku coolly.

"Are you going to unchain me?" he asked.

He walked towards Lelouch and reached into his pocket, pulling out the keys and moving towards the cuff. The raven-haired boy quickly retracted his leg as much as the chain would allow, as he growled out, "Don't touch me."

Suzaku winced at the venom in Lelouch's voice, but sighed as he crossed his arms over his chest. "You know Lelouch, you really are making it hard for me to unchain you when you won't give me access to the cuff."

"Just give me the keys, I can do it myself."

"I don't trust you. You could destroy my keys with your laser vision or something."

"I don't have laser vision!" Lelouch all but shouted, his patience wearing thin as he glared daggers at Suzaku.

"As far as I know…" Suzaku retorted. Lelouch continued to glare at him vehemently.

"If I had laser vision, there would be a hole through your head already." The brunette thought about this for a moment.

"That's true," he acknowledged slowly, but he still made no move to hand the keys over to the other boy.

C.C. sighed loudly from her position on the chair behind them, she was clearly getting bored of these shenanigans. "Well ladies, while you bicker over this I am going to finish dining in peace where I don't have to listen to this foolishness," she said flatly, although there was an indiscernible glint in her eyes. She got up from the chair and took the entire pizza box with her as she glided lithely out of the room on creamy white, long legs. She was truly lucky that all the men in the room were gay, even if they didn't know it yet.

Lelouch needed to get those keys from Suzaku. But how? He ran through all possible plans of action in his mind. 'I could kick him between the legs… But then the keys would fall to the floor with him and I would have less of a chance at getting them than I have now.' This was difficult, to say the least.

Plan B: Tell Suzaku that a giant green gopher was standing behind him with a knife. Good, except for the fact that Suzaku was entirely way too gullible and would then most likely panic. Not a good idea. The thought alone would probably lead to necessary weekly visits to a therapist.

Plan C: … No. Lelouch inwardly shook his head. There was no way that he would ever degrade himself in doing something like that. But, desperate times did call for desperate measures, and he could feel a bruise forming around his ankle, and that was without a doubt calling for him to take desperate measures. He took a deep breath and refocused, looking up and realizing that Suzaku was staring at him. Raven-colored eyebrows furrowed. This would work.

Without even leaving time for another thought to pass through his head, Lelouch quickly got up onto his knees on the bed and leaned over, wrapping one of his arms around Suzaku's neck for support and planted his lips fully onto the other boy's.

Emerald eyes widened in utter shock, unable to react to what was happening. Lelouch, his friend for years, was kissing him. His male, nonetheless attractive, friend.

Before he had time to think about what he wanted to do in response, the pale boy pulled away. Suzaku blushed bright red.

"Wh-what was that for?" he stammered.

Lelouch was just as flustered, but better at hiding it than his more innocent friend. He lifted his hand up slightly and jangled the keys in the air, making a soft clinging noise as they hit each other. Suzaku did a double take and looked down at his hands where the keys had just been but a moment ago.

"That is what 'that' was for," Lelouch answered as he heard the click in the lock and pulled the cuff off his ankle, rubbing it softly. He stood up and then proceeded to slap Suzaku across the face. "And you deserve that too. Chain me up again and I will not hesitate to kill you." Lelouch stretched and tried not to fall over on wobbly legs from having been on the bed all day.

Suzaku just gaped at him. He couldn't believe that Lelouch had just kissed him, still. The slap was a surprise as well, but the kiss, well, that… There weren't any words to describe it. All he knew was that he wanted it again.

He grabbed Lelouch's wrist as he was stretching and pulled him close, crushing their lips together again, this time it was Lelouch's turn to be surprised. He put his hands on Suzaku's chest, trying to push him away, but he didn't get the chance, because Suzaku only pulled him closer.

And that was when C.C., with her impeccable timing, walked in on the both of them as she moved towards Suzaku's dresser to get another t-shirt.

"Let's try to keep it PG ladies," she said, not even bothering to look up at them as

Lelouch was finally able to pull away and glare daggers at Suzaku. He looked like he wanted to slap him again, but he refrained because he knew that C.C. would only ridicule him mercilessly for being just like a girl.

Lelouch grumbled something unintelligible. There wasn't even anywhere for him to go because he was stuck in that damned apartment. He jabbed a blushing Suzaku in the chest with his finger.

"I want out of here Suzaku and you better figure out how I can because there is no way in hell that I am going to spend the rest of my days in this apartment," he growled. And with that he stormed off into the living room, C.C. smiling devilishly and following closely behind him.

* * *

A/N: Please review, it lets me know that people still actually like to read this fanfic and that I shouldn't just scrap it and move on. They also motivate me to write, so please review X3


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